In current imaging systems that employ spatial light modulators composed of individually addressable pixels, a beam of incident light is directed to the pixels of the spatial light modulator. By setting the pixels in an ON state, the incident light is modulated onto a screen so as to generate bright image pixels on the screen. In this configuration, the modulated light is referred to as the ON-state light, and the pixels in the ON state are referred to as ON-state pixels. By setting the pixels in an OFF state, the incident light is modulated away from the screen so as to cause dark pixels on the screen. In this configuration, the modulated light is referred to as OFF-state light, and the pixels in the OFF state are referred to as OFF-state pixels. For obtaining a high contrast ratio, the OFF-state light is dumped or discarded by the imaging systems, which on the other hand, reduces the total optical throughput to the viewing screen.
Accordingly, what is needed in the art is a method and system for recapturing the OFF-state light.